TheSamba.com :: View topic

Wed Jan 13, 2021 9:21 am

Funny, this thread reminded me that i had one of these to go in.
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/classifieds/detail.php?id=1708934

I can say that it fits the Type3 with a bit of modification.
You'll have to be willing to grind away some of the embossed ribs in the kick panel.

I'm planning to pick up a couple of ring tongues off of the battery cable and run it to a Molex plug up thru the little gap between the tunnel and kick.
It will make a little pigtail that i can keep tucked under the carpet when the car is being driven.
I have the same mod done to a little trickle 'battery maintainer' to match, with a Molex plug, so you can just plug the charger in.
This is common with motorcycles.

The disconnect with the screw knob like Martin has, I have one on my bus.
Not a fan because they sometimes don't disconnect and sit there still making contact. BTDT.

That said, all of this is a band-aid for a discharge situation.
Fix the discharge problem; It will come back and bite you in the ass.

I speak from experience on that one.. :roll:

Wed Jan 13, 2021 10:50 pm

Clatter wrote: Funny, this thread reminded me that i had one of these to go in.
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/classifieds/detail.php?id=1708934

I can say that it fits the Type3 with a bit of modification.
You'll have to be willing to grind away some of the embossed ribs in the kick panel.

I'm planning to pick up a couple of ring tongues off of the battery cable and run it to a Molex plug up thru the little gap between the tunnel and kick.
It will make a little pigtail that i can keep tucked under the carpet when the car is being driven.
I have the same mod done to a little trickle 'battery maintainer' to match, with a Molex plug, so you can just plug the charger in.
This is common with motorcycles.

The disconnect with the screw knob like Martin has, I have one on my bus.
Not a fan because they sometimes don't disconnect and sit there still making contact. BTDT.

That said, all of this is a band-aid for a discharge situation.
Fix the discharge problem; It will come back and bite you in the ass.

I speak from experience on that one.. :roll:

Thanks for the input! I already caused more harm then good trying to sort out the issues! 😣

Wed Jan 13, 2021 10:51 pm

bad1916 wrote: Absolutely. I have had a few customers cars that have had them and they work really well and are definitely easier than constantly removing the cable off the post, especially when the battery is under the seat. In a customers car we were getting a large spark but could see it until after we removed that.

Thanks for the feedback! 👍

Sat Jan 16, 2021 7:53 am

Here's a couple of better pictures of the battery terminals and the disconnect switch and how I wired them up. Battery is currently dead, and an alternator conversion is in store for this winter.

Tue Aug 16, 2022 12:14 pm

Since you have an alternator , if one of the diodes in the alt is faulty this will drain the battery.

Fri Aug 26, 2022 2:36 pm

I'm really late to this thread, but here's a solution I devised for myself about 4 years ago which I am still very happy with.
First I made a bracket to retain my 6V optima battery using the factory battery tie down straps. I designed in a cover on this to isolate the positive side from potential seat spring contact.
Next I used one of those Hella switches with the removable red t-handle. I built a spacer to mount this recessed under the seat, so that it was flush with the kick panel in the passenger compartment.
Not pictured, I subsequently re-worked the red key, using one of those star-like heater control knobs from an early bug, so it looks more like a factory feature when in use.